RELATIVES of people with learning disabilities have been told activities at day care centres will be scrapped.
Families of centre users were told by Hull City Council yesterday activities such as horse riding, cinema and theatre trips, bowling and pub lunches will stop next week.
However, after being contacted by the Mail, the council said letters given to families about the changes were sent out in error.
Instead, it is said the changes would not be implemented until April.
Trevor Williamson, 53, sends his stepchildren Kerry, 29, and Graham Meyerhoff, 34, to Ings Resource Centre, in east Hull.
He said: "It seems funny that letters were sent out saying services were changing from Monday, then they said it was an error when families and the Mail phoned them about it.
"We don't know where we stand.
"They say activities will become more 'in-house' from April, instead of next week, but we still don't know what it all means.
"We are also supposed to be getting a personal allowance which we can spend on activities of our choice.
"But no one has bothered to tell us how that will work.
"Will we have to find people to carry out these activities ourselves? Or will the council recommend people?
"There are a lot of unanswered questions."
Families were handed letters yesterday, stating outside activities would cease on Monday, March 7.
But then a statement was released by the council saying the letter was sent out as a mistake.
In a statement to the press, Trish Dalby, Hull City Council's corporate director for neighbourhoods and families, said: "There are going to be changes to the provision of day centre activities as a result of the difficult budget decisions the council had to make last week.
"This will include more of a focus on centre-based activities.
"However, these changes will not take place until April and I would like to apologise for any miscommunication about this happening sooner and for any concern this may have raised.
"Since the introduction of personal budgets, people have much more control and choice over what support and activities they can access.
"Before April we are going to be talking to people that use the day care centres, and their carers and families, about how these changes may affect them and how they could choose to use a personal budget to decide how they would like to organise leisure activities to suit them and their needs."
Lisa Anderson's aunt, Angela Pidge, 35, spends weekdays at Bilton Grange Community Centre.
Mrs Anderson, 36, said: "Bilton Grange is only one room, so when activities are stopped there isn't a lot they can do.
"They need to be going out, they deserve a life.
"It will be a glorified babysitting service.
"We are going back to Victorian times."
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